The same was true when his Republican challenger -- Gov. Mitt Romney -- spoke on Sept. 14 at Lake Erie College in Painesville.

State law even says that a public schools system cannot charge a rental fee for such events.

However, that's not entirely the case for law enforcement expenses, a situation that will apply Saturday with the President's visit to Mentor as well as with a campaign appearance that evening in Painesville by House Speaker John Boehner.

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Lake County Sheriff Dan Dunlap said his agency can use some Homeland Security money to help defray expenses that will come about by Obama's Saturday visit.

What it boils down to, said Dunlap, is when a president, a presidential candidate, or some other high-profile politician chooses Lake County as a campaign stop or some other political event, the matter is one of providing mutual aid.

Thus, the costs are spread within various participating local, county and state law enforcement authorities so no one agency is stuck with a huge bill, Dunlap said.

"We have enough officers coming in from other agencies -- including a couple of deputies from Geauga County -- to work on this stop by the President as well as for the one that evening by Speaker Boehner," Dunlap said. "But we don't bill anyone because the publicity is good for the county."

In addition, Dunlap said that supplying a local law enforcement presence only makes sense, particularly after former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona and 18 others were shot by a lone gunman at a Tucson supermarket parking lot on Jan. 18, 2011.

"We don't want to go down in the history books as the place where the president or the House speaker were shot," Dunlap said.

Mentor Police Chief Daniel Llewellyn agreed that providing law enforcement support for such events is a mutual aid responsibility.

"This is a public safety issue, and we understand that our job is to make the president safe and the visitors, and we'll do what we have to do," Llewellyn said.

Mentor Schools Superintendent Matt Miller said the agreement his system has with the Obama For America committee is the same one employed four years ago when then-Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain also used Mentor High as a campaign venue.

When McCain visited, the expenses were only $700, and the agreement with the OFA committee is for expenses up to $2,000, Miller said.

"They are willing to pay for anything above $2,000, but we just have to let them know ahead of time," Miller said. "I would be surprised if we went about the $2,000 figure, though."

Other expenses, such as telephone lines for the president's staff and media, are handled separately, Miller said.

"And with a public facility like ours, if the Romney campaign wanted to come we'd treat it the same way," Miller said.

History likewise shows that presidential candidates were not given a free pass when using a publicly owned Lake County-based facility.

Eight years ago, Lake Metroparks Farmpark in Kirtland was used as a campaign venue by then-President George W. Bush, with costs paid for by his re-election committee, said the agency's interim Executive Director Paul Palagyi.

"Yes, they did pay the amount in full and on time: $9,700," Palagyi said. "We are very careful to tell people that they are welcome to come, but that have they have to pay and abide by the same rules like everyone else."

Palagyi also said the Lake County Democratic Party has rented the Farmpark as well as Painesville Township Park, and has paid its bills and on time as well.

The same largely applied to Lake Erie College, a privately funded school.

"We hosted the venue and did not charge Gov. Romney," said Ruta Greiner, Lake Erie College's director of public relations and creative services. "We were basically lending our institution, our students and the community to learn about government; that is what an institution likes ours is for."

Thus, said Greiner, the Romney campaign was responsible for its own cleanup costs and various other expenses.